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An now I will take this opportunity to tell you even more strange peculiarities about living in a third world country. There are some crazy rules concerning breaking the law here. I think I can see why they do it because it sure keeps the everyday crime to a real minimum.

Some tips on driving. It’s against the law to wear flip flops or sandals or even shoes that don’t have a back strap on them. Well, all my pretty little shoes are sandals or flip flops because I wear skirts every single day. And so when I have to drive somewhere I put on my classy brown Crocs and I look “very smart” as they say here in Sudan. If caught wearing improper shoes you can go to jail or pay a fine.

Black men are not allowed to braid their hair for any reason. Braided hair on a man is seen as criminal activity and they throw you right in jail for braided hair. If a woman is in town and has tight pants on she can be beaten right there on the street! I just wear skirts to avoid that little mess. And they can get thrown in jail for being promiscuous. YET, there are the night ladies who are allowed to do what they want because they are serving a purpose. Huh?!

When driving through a “roundabout” which is basically a four way intersection (although there are no stop signs or lights), if going straight you must put on your hazard lights while going through the intersection. An offense warrants a ticket and jail if they feel like it. Everything is a jail offense if they feel like it.

It is against the law to wear sunglasses while driving. If you are driving and the street police blow a whistle at you and you don’t stop they can shoot if they want to. So, basically no one listens to radios while they drive here. Wouldn’t want to miss that little whistle because you didn’t turn on your hazard lights.

No picture taking allowed anywhere in town. So if you must you better be real sneaky. If caught they just take away your camera. If you are white and someone runs into you with their car or motorbike, it is your fault because you are white and you have the money. If you are white and someone hits a goat or chicken or duck or any number of animals and you are anywhere in the vicinity, it is your fault because you are white and you have the money. I am being serious here! So, me, I have been working real hard on my tan!

And so all this makes it very hard to be a good Samaritan (no pun intended) because you will be blamed for whatever mishap it was that caused them to need help. The only way we can avoid giving rides to SPLA or police is by having this sticker on our trucks that is a gun with a lined thru circle meaning, No Guns Allowed.

I learn these as I go. There is a bridge that is over this small river and it always has these huge holes in it and you can see the water below thru them. It is the scariest thing to drive over. It is also the only way to the airport. They do a temporary fix by dropping steel plates over the holes. And so every so often they gather all this material to do the temporary fix and don’t tell anyone when it will be. And so you could be going to drop someone at the airport and come back to find you have to leave your truck at someone’s house and walk across and go back and get it a day or week later. It is just so crazy.

I am teaching the kids across the street to play baseball with this plastic bat and balls I found here on our compound. It is so cool because the kids around here used to yell at me thru our fence, “kawaja, kawaja” meaning white person. Now I hear at all times in the day, Carolina, Carolina. I have a name!!! It is so cute. On their way to school they yell “Carolina, how are you?!” When I go to visit they run out to the street to greet me. It’s pretty darn cute I tell ya! Of course if I keep giving them soccer balls and candy and beads and showing them movies on my computer, why wouldn’t they come running? Naw, they are just cool kids and they like having a kawaja as a friend. It’s like having the latest in electronic equipment. I am high tech man!

Last night I took a pastor and his family to dinner. I have told you about them before back in August when I went with Iris Ministries up to Mundari country to minister to the tribe up there. Well, this pastor told me that after we ministered there that week in August and after we prayed over the land and the people, the Chief of the town of Lekweni banned all alcohol and the people are honoring this. It is now alcohol free which is unheard of in all of South Sudan! Jesus just knocked this place down and poured Himself all over and they are wanting the real thing now. Way to go God! High fives

On a last note, I was very sick this week and realized it was an attack from the enemy. Tuesday evening I started getting the chills and body aches and a fever 100.5 and so I prayed throughout the night, waking up every hour. For two days before this I was making plenty of trips to the latrine. The next morning I was so week I felt like I would pass out. I even went for a malaria test because my eyes could not look at the light without hurting and my head was pounding. I just kept praying.